


Emptiness

by BreakfastTea



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Sora (Kingdom Hearts) Needs a Hug, don't mess with Kairi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-12
Updated: 2019-04-12
Packaged: 2020-01-12 08:16:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18442616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BreakfastTea/pseuds/BreakfastTea
Summary: Ven's heart is finally back where it belongs, causing Sora to collapse. Without Ven's heart, Sora's doesn't have enough strength to keep him awake, let alone fight. With the final battle looming, is there anything his friends can do to help him?





	Emptiness

**Author's Note:**

> Fanfic Friday #4! Another AU fic, although this one's a bit longer than last week's story. Hope you enjoy it, requester Anon :D

It happened without warning. One minute, Sora smiled happily at the sight of Ven back where he belonged. The next, he found himself struggling to keep his eyes open. He felt energy draining from him, flushing away until he had nothing left. He swayed, exhausted. The Land of Departure blurred, the light melding into everything until his vision turned white.

Goofy was the first to spot him. “Sora?”

He couldn’t even speak. His knees gave out and he tipped forwards.

The last thing he felt was his body crashing into Goofy’s arms.

“Sora! Sora, wake up!”

He didn’t even stir.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” Aqua hurried over, Ven close behind. She placed a hand over Sora’s head. She jolted as though receiving an electric shock. “Oh, no.”

“What happened?” Donald asked her.

She shook her head. “It’s… It’s like…” She looked over at Ven. “It’s like when you first came to us. Your heart needed to heal. And for the longest time, it was almost impossible to sense you were in there.”

Ven looked horrified. “Sora’s heart is damaged?”

Aqua frowned. “I think so.”

“How? He was fine a few minutes ago!” Donald said.

“We should take him back to Master Yen Sid,” Aqua said. “He’s the only one who can help explain this.”

Ven reached out and took Sora’s hand. “It’s my fault. I did this when I left his heart. I took too much of his strength and hurt him.”

“Now, don’t you go saying things like that,” Goofy said. “I know Sora, and he’d never blame you. Besides, we don’t know what’s wrong yet. We need to go back to Master Yen Sid. If anyone can help, he can.”

“But I – oh!” Ven looked down and saw Sora’s hand curling around his. Sora didn’t wake up, but he didn’t let go of Ven either.

“Guess you’d better stick close,” Goofy said.

Ven nodded. “He looked after me for all these years. Now it’s my turn.”

* * *

Everyone had gathered at Master Yen Sid’s tower. The old mage sat in his chair, looking grim. Ven glanced at the other people around him, guilt flickering inside him. Everyone looked so unhappy, and it was because of him. He was the one who’d hurt Sora, hurt him after all the years of being protected.

“It is a problem that could not have been foreseen,” Master Yen Sid said. “With Ventus being a part of his heart for so long, it seems that Sora’s didn’t grow the way it usually would. And now, given that he is harbouring Roxas and another’s heart within him, he doesn’t possess the strength to stand alone.” He closed his eyes. “His heart isn’t broken, it’s simply too weak to sustain him while his energy is focused on protecting others.”

“He seemed better when I stayed close,” Ven said.

“Indeed, his heart and yours will forever share a certain resonance,” Master Yen Sid said. “But he cannot rely on that forever. He must find his own strength.”

“There has to be something I – we – can do to help him!” Ven cried out.

“There is,” Master Yen Sid said. “But it will take time. Too much time here in this world. However, I have contacted Merlin, and we may be able to come up with a solution.”

“May be able to?” Riku demanded before Ven could speak. “What does that mean?”

“It means that there may be a chance Sora will no longer be able to stand as a Guardian of Light,” Aqua concluded.

“I fear our problem is worse than that,” Master Yen Sid said. “Without time to grow, Sora may never be himself again. He may never awaken fully, and neither will those within him.”

“No,” Kairi said, her voice steady. She glared at Master Yen Sid. “That’s not true. Sora’s stronger than you think, and I won’t let him fade.” She bowed quickly and headed out of the room.

Ven looked between her and Master Yen Sid. “I, uh, I’m gonna, um –” He too bowed and dashed after Kairi.

She stomped down the stairs. Ven hurried after her, feeling weariness in his own body. He was so slow. Twelve years of sleep hadn’t done him any favours. “Kairi, wait!”

She stopped and looked back. Tears shone in her eyes. She looked determined, the same way Aqua did sometimes. He felt good about Sora’s chances if Kairi fought for him. Ven reached her side, bending over to catch his breath. “I’m sorry,” he said. “We didn’t really get a chance to talk before. I’m Ventus, but call me Ven.”

Kairi smiled briefly. “It’s nice to meet you.” She carried on walking. “I’m glad you’re alright.”

Ven stayed at her side. It felt familiar, like he’d done this a thousand times before. “I’m not going to let Sora stay like this. Whatever it takes, I’m going to help him. Just like he’s helped me.”

“Thank you,” Kairi said. “I know he’s going to be okay. Sora’s stronger than people realise.”

“I know he is. He looked after me practically his whole life. And now, all I’ve done is cause trouble.”

Kairi shook her head. “He wouldn’t see it that way. Sora will be happy for you, so you’ll have to be happy for him.”

“How?” Ven asked. “His heart is so weak, he can’t even open his eyes.”

“He will,” Kairi said. “Because we’re going to be there for him.”

They went into Sora’s room together. The curtains were pulled, the light soft. Sora was asleep on the bed, on his side, breathing so slowly it was hard to tell he breathed at all. Ventus yawned suddenly. He chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. “Sorry,” he told Kairi. “Can’t believe I’m still tired.”

She looked at him. “The others said he reacted when you held his hand.”

Ven nodded. “Like he knew I was still there.”

Taking his hand, Kairi reached out and took Sora’s too. She placed Ven’s over the top of it. “You should stay with him. He probably misses you.”

Ven sat at Sora’s side. “It’s strange how I feel like I know him but also kinda don’t know him. But I know without a doubt he kept me safe for all those years.”

“He kept me safe too,” Kairi said. “When I needed it most, Sora saved me.”

“Wait, you were in Sora’s heart too?” Ven asked.

Kairi laughed. “There’s a lot to catch up on, huh?”

She did her best to fill him in, stopping only when she realised he’d fallen asleep, curled up at Sora’s side, holding tight to his hand. Kairi sat back and kept watch. She would keep Sora safe, no matter what happened.

A short while later, someone knocked on the door. “Come in,” she called.

Master Yen Sid entered. He nodded. “We have a plan.”

* * *

Sora stirred. Opening his eyes, he found himself in a familiar tower, tucked up in an unfamiliar bed. He felt a hand clamped around his. Turning, he saw Ven sleeping at his side, holding his hand. Sora didn’t remember how they’d gotten there. The last thing he remembered was Ven waking up in the Land of Departure. And then? Nothing.

Lethargy clung to him. His heart thudded slowly in his chest. He didn’t feel himself at all. His thoughts took too long to come together, and he couldn’t find the strength to get up. Couldn’t even find the energy to talk. He just felt too heavy.

Someone shifted nearby. Sora’s eyes slid across the room to where a figure sat on a chair. He blinked, the name taking a moment to swirl its way out of his drowsy brain.

Master Yen Sid.

He stood and approached, his smile gentle despite his heavy-set eyebrows. “It’s good to see you awake. I’m sure you’re not feeling yourself right now, but everything will be alright, I assure you.”

Sora had no idea how to respond to any of that.

A gasp sounded and smaller footsteps ran over. “Sora!”

Kairi. Kairi was here. Sora wanted to smile, but he didn’t even have the energy for that. His eyes drooped, heavier than lead.

“Rest,” Master Yen Sid said. “When you next awaken, things will be better.”

Sora gave in. As he drifted off, Master Yen Sid sat back.

“You can give him the time he needs, can’t you?” Kairi asked. He couldn’t stay like this. Everything about him was so subdued. Even his eyes lacked any kind of spark.

“Merlin and I will do all we can,” Master Yen Sid said. “We will not leave him like this.”

“How can we help?” Kairi asked.

“Believe in him,” Master Yen Sid said. “And trust that the connections he has to others will give his own heart the strength it needs to grow.” He looked to Ven. “They will have to stay close for now. But eventually, Sora’s heart will find its own strength.”

“But –” Kairi hesitated. How could she even think it? And yet she had to know the answer. “Will Sora still be himself? If so much of his heart’s strength came from Ven, what’s left of him?” What if he came back different? What if she’d never known Sora because Sora had been Ven since he was four years old?

“Worry not,” Master Yen Sid said. “The Sora you know and love is still there. He needs you to believe in him. And once his heart builds its strength naturally, he’ll come back.”

Kairi nodded. That had to be true. Sora would come back. She couldn’t doubt it.

“Come,” Master Yen Sid said. “We mustn’t waste another moment.”

* * *

Birdsong called to him. The happy, joyous sound pulled him from dreamless sleep. Except Sora felt like he hadn’t slept at all. Exhaustion swamped him. It didn’t give in.

Something squeezed his hand. Looking down, he saw another holding on. He forced himself to look up, and he saw a familiar face smiling back at him.

“There you are,” Ven said. “Good morning.”

Good… morning? Sora couldn’t even think of a response to that. Couldn’t really think of anything to say at all. That felt wrong. _Everything_ felt wrong. He fought against it. “Ven?” His voice came out as a scrap of a whisper.

“It’s okay, you’re safe. Save your strength.”

Save his strength? What strength? Blinking took all his energy.

“Just focus on staying awake,” Ven said. “That’s all you need to do for now, promise.”

Stay awake? He could do that. He could…

A finger jabbed his ribs. “Hey! Your eyes closed!”

Sora blinked them open again. Oops.

“Wanna sit up? Maybe that’ll help.” Ven pulled him upright before Sora could even think of a response. “There you go!”

Sora stared at the room around him. Other than the bed, he saw a chair and a desk, some books in one corner, a door he knew he’d never reach right now, and an open window with a curtain stirring in the breeze.

“You don’t need to worry about anything. Apparently, in this world you relive the same day over and over again. Like time doesn’t flow. Or something.” Ven chuckled, scrubbing at the back of his head. “I’m not sure I really understood it when Merlin explain it.”

Sora definitely had no idea what was going on.

“You’re gonna be okay,” Ven said. “There’s no way you won’t be. I mean, you were so little when you saved me. I’m not surprised you don’t remember. Honestly, I’m not sure I remember it so well myself. Everything from back then is kinda hazy. Like a dream.”

Sora was so disconnected right now, he could’ve been in a dream.

“I know how you feel,” Ven said. “After you saved me, the first time, when you shared your light with me, it took me time to wake up. Like, properly wake up. The world felt cloudy, like I couldn’t really see properly. I couldn’t think fast enough, or react to anything. Not like I do now. My head was so muddled. But being with Terra and Aqua helped me. Saved me. And thanks to them, I found myself again. Found my strength.” Ven squeezed his hand. “That’s what’s gonna happen to you too, I know it.”

The words filtered through. They sounded… good. Sora nodded. Be with his friends. That sounded… nice.

Wait.

His eyes were closed again. He opened them. Ven wasn’t there.

“Hi.”

It was Kairi.

She looked… looked… sad.

Something sparked, deep in Sora’s chest. He didn’t… he didn’t like…

“Sad.” His voice sounded hoarse, like he hadn’t spoken in too long.

“Huh?” Kairi stared at him. “Why are you sad?”

No. Not him. He dragged an arm free of the blankets enshrouding him and pointed at her. “Sad.”

“Oh!” Kairi quickly brushed her eyes. “No. I mean, maybe a little, but it’s okay. Don’t worry about me.”

But he was worried. He didn’t like to see her sad. Sora pulled himself forwards. Kairi grabbed him, like she thought he might fall out of bed. He wrapped his arms around her.

He wanted to tell her. No, he had to tell her…

“Don’t,” he said. “Don’t be sad.”

Kairi gasped. She hugged him back. “I knew it,” she said. “I knew you were in there.”

Sora breathed in. Kairi’s scent filled his nose. She always smelled of seasalt and flowers, like home. He clung to her, even as the need to sleep crashed over him again. He wanted to stay awake.

“It’s okay,” Kairi said. “You don’t have to push so hard.”

He did. He had to. But he couldn’t do it. Tears of frustration gathered in his eyes. They flowed down his cheeks. He needed to be stronger than this. It was the last thing he felt before he fell back asleep.

* * *

It went on and on. Sora would awaken, fight to stay that way for as long as he could until his dulled eyes to slip closed again. He spoke occasionally, voice thin and faltering. Mostly he seemed content to sit and listen. He only managed to stay awake for longer than a few hours when Ven stayed by his side. During those times, they got Sora out of bed and helped him walk around Merlin’s training ground. Kairi was sure he seemed content to be with Ven. Which made sense. Their hearts had been together for so long. And yet Sora’s strength always ebbed the moment Ven went too far away.

Except he was getting better. Slowly, surely, he managed to stay awake a little bit longer with and without Ven. They had to be patient. Kairi didn’t give in. And she didn’t let anyone else give up on Sora either. Donald and Goofy sat with him, talking about all their adventures. Ven spent as much time with Sora as he could, Aqua never far away. Even Axel stopped by, although he always looked lost and awkward. Riku struggled, looking angry that his friend had been left like this. Kairi caught him staring at Ven more than once, but there was something else in his expression, something that looked a little more like guilt. Eventually, she had to take him aside and call him out on it.

“I can’t help him,” Riku said. “And I remember when I told Sora to listen to someone out there who was hurting and needed him. That must’ve been Ventus. If I hadn’t done that, his heart would’ve grown like it should’ve done, instead of being crushed by someone else’s.”

Kairi stared at him. “How do you still not know him?”

Riku flinched. “What?”

“Sora didn’t need you to tell him to reach out to someone in pain. Ven told me he did it so long before that, there’s no way he could even remember. It’s Sora’s nature to help. To care. Sometimes he puts those people before his own needs.” She leaned back against a tree, watching the wind stir the leaves overhead. “None of us could ever stop him from being who he is. And blaming yourself is selfish.”

He stared at her. “Selfish?”

“You’re always trying to take other people’s burdens from them, like you think you can do it better.” She turned to him. “You need to learn to trust people to deal with things for themselves.”

Riku sucked in a deep breath. Kairi thought he might yell. Instead, he laughed. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”

“I am,” she said with a nod. “And don’t be so hard on Ven, either. He would never hurt Sora on purpose.”

“Alright, alright,” Riku said, holding up his hands. He nudged her with his shoulder. “It’s been a while since you lectured me.”

“I haven’t forgotten how!” Kairi teased.

* * *

Cold glass pressed against his back. Sora opened his eyes and found himself to atop a station. Light came from far above, shining out of the darkness. He knew this place. Knew it well. He sat up and looked at the platform beneath him. It seemed different. Dimmer. He didn’t like that.

And he couldn’t keep sleeping so much. He could feel his friends’ worry. It hovered over all of them like storm clouds on the ocean’s horizon. They talked to him, walked with him when he had the strength, kept him company no matter what, but he heard the strains in their voices. He could feel their sorrow as keenly as his own. He hated that. Hated being the reason they were all so unhappy.

He had to be stronger. Now. For them.

Sora stood. His hand drifted to his chest. He hadn’t lost all his light and strength. And what he had burned strong within. Maybe he hadn’t relied on Ven on purpose, but he had, and now he had to find his own strength.

Strength that came from those who cared about him the most. Because if they needed him, he would be there for him. Always had, always would.

The station pulsed underfoot. Light shone beneath him, rippling from him to the platform’s edges. Sora released a breath it felt like he’d held for days. A smile lit up his face. Yes. He could do it. He wasn’t going to be a burden on his friends any longer. Soon, he’d be able to help them out just the way they needed him to.

He had to wake up.

* * *

Sora stirred. Ven looked over at him and startled out of his chair, leaping to his feet. “Sora! You’re awake! And you look…” Normal. Alive. Like there was still a light within.

Sora smiled. “I feel better.” His voice still sounded hoarse, but there was more to it now, an undercurrent of life, of energy.

Eyes filling with relieved tears, Ven nodded. He reached out before he could stop himself and ruffled Sora’s hair, just the way Aqua did with him. “You’re gonna be okay.”

Nodding, Sora sat up. Ven jolted forward, ready to catch him, but he didn’t need it. He pushed his blankets away and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. “I wanna go outside.”

Ven didn’t argue. He held out his hand and Sora took it. His legs wobbled, but they held steady. Ven laughed. “You’ll be summoning your Keyblade before you know it!”

Sora cocked his head to one side. “Mmm, not yet.”

“Okay. One step at a time.”

Together, they walked out into the sunshine. Sora’s friends saw them and rushed over to greet him. Ven watched Sora smiling, laughing, accepting hugs from Kairi, Donald and Goofy, and a fist bump from Riku. Ven glanced at Riku, who looked back and nodded slightly. For the first time, Ven thought the guy might be warming up to him. Ven leaned back, his arms going behind his head.

Aqua joined him, smiling. “See? He just needed a little time. Just like you did.” She laughed. “You two really are alike.”

* * *

At first, Sora had to train with a wooden sword. Master Yen Sid warned of dire, heart-draining consequences if he used his Keyblade too soon. And as always, Master Yen Sid was right. Sora’s endurance was non-existent. Not that it stopped him. In the world where the same day repeated itself over and over, he battled through exhaustion and pain with Ven, blocking blow after blow and running through drills, until he dashed off to the nearest bush to throw up in.

This, Ven noted, was the seventh ‘day’ the training ended in such a way. He grabbed a water bottle and walked over to where Sora lost his breakfast. And half of last night’s dinner. Gross.

“Ugh,” Sora said, falling onto his butt. He wiped his mouth, and gratefully accepted a bottle of water.

“You don’t have to push yourself this hard,” Ven said. “Time doesn’t flow normally in this place, remember? We can take as long as we need.”

Sora shook his head. “I don’t want to take long. There’s too much waiting on us.”

“You’ve come so far already,” Ven said. “You’re talking and walking and –”

“And now I have to fight,” Sora said. He finished the water bottle and dragged himself to his feet. Ven winced in sympathy. “Come on. We have to keep practicing.”

Ven sighed. He got the feeling he wasn’t going to get through to Sora on his own.

Which meant it was time to pull in the two people he actually might listen to. Turning his back, Ven pulled out his phone and sent a quick message to Riku and Kairi. He put it away, knowing Sora’s oldest friends would be there any minute to help out.

“Anytime you’re ready!” Sora called, sounding cocky.

Ven looked over and saw his young friend grinning despite the sweat running down his face and the pale tinge to his skin. He shook his head, remembering how he’d been back when he’d had to recover from his own injuries. “Okay,” Ven called back, dropping into his fighting stance. “Let’s see what you’ve got!”

Riku and Kairi arrived just in time to see Sora running off to another bush. Kairi went to run to him, but Riku’s hand on her shoulder stopped her. “Let him finish,” Riku said. “Then we can lecture him about pushing it too much.”

They watched, silent, as Ven rubbed Sora’s back. “I think that’ll do for today,” Ven said.

“No, I’m not done. I can –”

Ven looked over. “Oh, hi!” he called, sounding unnaturally cheerful even for him. “Nice timing! We’re gonna take a break!”

Kairi ran forward. Riku followed at a slower pace. “Sora, you look tired,” she said.

“Tired? Nah, I’m –” His face paled and he turned back to the bush, throwing up again.

“You don’t need to train ‘til you’re this sick,” Kairi said.

Sora shook his head. “I can’t waste time.”

“There’s no time to waste here,” Riku said. “It’s a special place outside time, remember?”

Sora straightened. Kairi saw him wincing. A quick glance showed her the bruises and grazes all over his skin. She cast Curaga. “It’s time to stop,” she said.

“I can’t,” Sora said. “Not until –”

“Until you collapse?” Riku asked. “Because that’s what’s gonna happen if you keep pushing like this.”

Sora’s head whipped towards Riku. “Xehanort’s still out there. I can’t spend forever here. I have to be better now!”

“No, you don’t,” Riku said. “You can be better when your body’s ready.”

“That’s not good enough!” Sora snapped.

Ven stared at Sora. He had to restrain a flinch. The angrier he looked, the more Sora looked like Vanitas. 

“It’s gonna have to be,” Riku said. “There’s no other choice. And none of us want to see you hurt. You gotta take it a little easier. Before you do something that really sets your recovery back.”

“Please, Sora,” Kairi said. “This is too much.”

“Sora, listen to them,” Ven said, gently. “We can pick this up again later.”

Sighing, Sora slumped. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t want to keep wasting everyone’s time.” He tried smiling. It didn’t look very convincing. “I’ll stop for today.”

Ven felt the tension seep out of his body. Because Sora wasn’t Vanitas, no matter how alike they looked.

“You’re not wasting time in a place where time doesn’t move,” Riku said. “It’s the same day, over and over. You don’t need to worry so much.”

Sora didn’t look happy. His hand squeezed the training sword he held.

Ven looked to Kairi and shook his head. He didn’t know how to help. Reaching out, Kairi took Sora’s hand. “Come on,” she said, dragging him away. “There’s a lake nearby. Let’s go for a swim. It’ll be kinda like home, right, Riku?”

“Hey, I tried that lake already. It was more like an ice bath,” Riku said, following the pair.

“You get used to it,” Kairi said. She looked over at Ven. “Come on, you should try it too.”

“Uh –” Ven really didn’t like the sound of a cold lake.

“Unless you’re not feeling brave,” she added.

“What? I’m brave! I’m totally brave!” Ven raced after them, ignoring their laughter. Well, except Sora’s laughter. That sounded great after so long.

They spent the rest of the day at the lake. Kairi dived in like it was nothing, laughing at the others’ reluctance. Ven swam from one shore to another before making his excuses and retreating to the little house they all stayed in to find warmth and food. Riku braved the cold like not doing so would bring about the end of the world. Sora swam a little before retreating to the lake’s edge, feet dipped in. He said the cold didn’t compare to Arendelle’s and he told them a little about the world before he drifted off into a post-training doze.

“He really is getting better,” Kairi said, swimming over to Riku.

“I know,” Riku said. “But we’re gonna have to keep an eye on him. Stop him from doing anything too reckless.”

Kairi giggled. “He really is hopeless without us.”

Riku slumped. “I was so worried,” he said. “I thought he might never come back to us.”

“He has,” Kairi said. “Or, he is. We keep telling him it’s gonna take time, so maybe it’s us that needs to give him that time.” She looked over to where Sora slept under a tree, the sun shining on him. “It’s all there; the knowledge of how to fight. But what he needs now is strength. And he’s got to find it for himself.”

“You mean he can’t do it because he thinks it’s for us. For his friends.”

Kairi nodded. “Exactly.”

“What do you think we should do?” Riku asked.

“Give him space,” Kairi said. “We haven’t really left him alone the whole time he’s been here. I can tell when he’s bottling things up. He’s angry at himself, and if he was really honest, with everyone and everything else too. He needs a place to just be by himself for a while so he can work it out.”

“Okay,” Riku said. “Tomorrow, he gets a day to just chill out.”

“Alone,” Kairi added.

“Right. No one watching him. No one training with him. No one doing anything.”

Kairi nodded. “Exactly.”

* * *

Sora slept hard that night. When he woke up the next day, sore but rested, he was amazed and shocked to find a note on the kitchen table.

_You hereby have the day to yourself. No fighting. No training. Just a day to do whatever it is you want to do. We’ll see you all tomorrow._

A memory flickered through his mind, of a letter posted on a window in The Castle That Never Was. _What’s a vacation_? Sora shook himself. That wasn’t his memory. He looked back to the note on the table. His friends had signed it. Sora put it down, head tilting to one side. They’d left him alone? They were trusting him for a whole day? Sora fell into a chair. The shock wore off, leaving relief in its wake.

He hadn’t realised how much he needed time to himself until he had it. When had he last had a whole day to do nothing? He couldn’t remember. A flicker of guilt flashed through his heart, but he ignored it. He had time after all. And honestly? A day off was what he wanted. No pressure to train. No one watching him. No one looking at him with so much hope and relief he felt the weight of that pressing down on him until he did something to prove he wasn’t still too weak.

One day off? Okay, then he was going to enjoy every second of it.

After breakfast, Sora decided to return to the lake. It really was cold, but the refreshing chill woke him up. He felt so much better for the dip. A walk through the forest also helped. Strolling down the shaded pathways, the only sounds his footsteps and the breeze through the leaves, Sora found himself relaxing, tension he didn’t even notice until now draining away.

And for the first time in however long it’d been, he felt… stronger. Properly stronger. More solid somehow, like he wasn’t missing part of himself. The void Ven’s heart had left wasn’t there anymore. Sora’s own light had filled it. And he was who he’d always been. Maybe a little wearier, and definitely more frustrated, but he was Sora. His heart belonged to him, even if he did still shelter two more within. Roxas, and that other person… Whoever they were, Sora knew that when they left, he might be a little emptier, but he’d still be him. And that was what mattered.

Reaching a clearing, Sora saw a place to sit atop a rock. Sitting, he looked across the forest ahead of him, the trees shimmering in the sunlight. He pulled in a deep, soothing breath. One day, free of responsibility, free of training, free of others and their hopes and expectations, really had been what he’d needed after all.

* * *

“Okay, are you ready?” Ven asked.

“Ready,” Sora said.

Everyone gathered around him, waiting. Nerves fluttered through him. If this didn’t work… No. It would work. He’d trained hard. He’d regained lost strength. His heart had found the strength it needed to belong to him properly… Well, him and two others. But he could stand. He could fight. He didn’t have to cling to Ven. Everything felt better. He was better. This was going to be fine.

Hand held out, he called to it.

The Keyblade.

His Keyblade.

Maybe it hadn’t chosen him the way it had chosen his friend, but it was his, and together they’d stopped more Heartless than anyone could count.

In a flash of light, the Kingdom Key appeared.

A cheer when out. Sora found himself mobbed by his friends. He laughed in relief. There it was, one Keyblade and he didn’t feel any different.

At last, he was back to normal.

Dismissing it, he looked at his friends. “Alright,” he said. “It’s time to stop Xehanort.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I'm hopping back over to the FFXV fandom for a couple weeks, but I'll be back soon with more requests <3


End file.
